AL-QUDS – Amid series of escalations and religious tensions in Al-Quds, following the Israeli new restricctions, barring men under 50 from entering the mosque, the city’s Muslim and Christian population remarkably demonstrated heartwarming moment of unity when a Christian man stood to pray among his Muslim brothers last Friday.
“I had a dream since I was a child. I wanted to spread the world with love. I wanted to be the one who plants love in people’s hearts,” Nidal Aboud told CNN on Sunday, July 23.
A Christian man prays alongside Muslims outside the Old City of Jerusalem during mid-day prayers on Friday. pic.twitter.com/ixvdcpkNIY
— Oren Liebermann (@OrenCNN) July 23, 2017
The 24-year-old Palestinian said he wanted to stand with Muslims in solidarity.
Holding a bible with a cross around his neck, he said he didn’t feel out of place.
“I asked my Muslim friends for their permission to pray between them. They were asking me to stand beside them,” he said.
“My motivation was to stand in solidarity with my Muslim brothers and in solidarity with our Palestinian issue against the [Israeli] occupation and its policies against our holy sites, whether it’s the mosque or the church.”
Israeli occupation forces have also installed metal detectors outside the mosque and Aboud said he would refuse to walk through a detector if one were placed outside the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in the Old City.
On Sunday, Israeli forces installed security cameras, a move that is likely to further inflame tensions.
Aboud sees his act as a way of bridging gap among the religions in the region. He is urging all Christians to unite with Muslims against what he says is blatant unfairness, and even urged Jews to stand against Israeli occupation.
“I see it as a sign from God that my dream came true to be the ambassador of goodwill between religions.”
Al-Aqsa is the Muslims’ first Qiblah [direction Muslims take during prayers] and it is the third holiest shrine after Al Ka`bah in Makkah and Prophet Muhammad’s Mosque in Madinah, Saudi Arabia.
Its significance has been reinforced by the incident of Al Isra’a and Al Mi’raj — the night journey from Makkah to Al-Quds and the ascent to the Heavens by Prophet Muhammad (Peace and Blessings be Upon Him).
Israel occupied the holy city and the West Bank in the 1967 war and later annexed it in a move not recognized by the international community or UN resolutions.
Since then, Israel has adopted a series of oppressive measures to force the Palestinians out of the city, including systematic demolition of their homes and building settlements.